Keeper of the Melody Stone
by Secretly-A-Fangirl
Summary: Chase Young wants to rule the world and to do that he needs to find the Keeper of the Melody Stone. Nakoma just wants to be left alone and spend time with her brother, but why is her necklace glowing? She'll have to face trials that make her question her sanity while she fights not succumb to Chase's power. UNDER REVISION
1. Chapter 1

Five teens are gathered in a large park; the group trying to decide on what they would do for the rest of the afternoon. "C'mon, Katie, what's wrong with tag," asks a brunette girl. "You used to love it!" The other brunette, Katie, rolls her eyes, thinking herself above the stupid game; they were seniors for crying out loud!

"No I didn't, Bree," Katie counters," I hated it with a passion." The shortest of the three girls, a redhead named Nakoma, rolls her eyes. She'd be content to just go to the bookstore down the street, but she was the only one of the five teens that liked to read.

"Why don't we just go and get some ice cream," Nakoma suggests. "I'll buy."

"No, we're gonna do something at the park," the boy next to her says. "That's why we came here."

"Hey," says another, slightly heavyweight, boy," she's offering to buy ice cream, don't turn her down." All of them begin to argue and Nakoma walks over to the benches and sits down; tired of her friends already and they'd only been together for five damn minutes. This always happens and they always end up playing basketball. A glowing object in a nearby bush catches her eye, Nakoma walking over to see what it is and finding a plain emerald stone fixed onto a silver chain—the gem glowing a faint gold color. She picks it up to examine it only to have someone slam into her.

"What the heck," she cries, sitting up and wiping some dirt off her arms. The boy that ran into her helps her up, blushing a little. Speaking of little, the boy is short with a large, bald head. _I bet he gets teased about that often_, she thinks to herself, smirking a little.

"I am most sorry," he apologizes, his voice sounding like a small child's, "but can I have my necklace back?" She clutches the necklace tightly when three other people join the bald kid. All of them wore matching outfits, so either she'd just run into a gang or these guys went to some sort of fancy school—she really hoped for the latter.

"How do I know it's yours?" Nakoma raises an eyebrow at the group in front of her; the necklace was clutched in her fist as a feeling of protection washes over her. She didn't want to hand the necklace over and her fingers tightened around it even more. She would be the one walking away with this necklace no matter what she has to do, of that she was certain.

"A smart question." Nakoma turns at the new voice and comes face-to-face with a man in a strange armor; on either side of him are two tigers, their teeth bared and ready to pounce at their master's command. Nakoma wastes no time in tucking tail and running, her friends right behind her, having noticed her uneasy expression and the tension in her stance before the weirdo appeared behind her.

"Did you start a fight or something," the heavyweight boy, Brandon, asks.

"Why does everyone think I start the fights," Nakoma demands to know as she continues to sprint down the street.

"'Cause you usually do," the other boy, Christian, points out with a devious smirk. That was only half true; she only fought after the other person swung first.

"Oh shut up," Bree snaps in agitation. "What the hell is going on?" Nakoma shrugs her shoulders and opens the door to her house. Once everybody was inside she shuts and locks the door; putting the necklace in the pocket of her jeans so the others wouldn't notice it and want to take a closer look at it. She wouldn't risk losing it after she just got her hands on it.

"Why were those people surrounding you," asks Brandon, rubbing the back of his neck, face a light shade of red after running for three blocks. Nakoma shrugs nervously, not entirely sure herself except for the fact she thinks she ran into the Xiaolin Losers her older brother fights all the time.

"I DON'T KNOW, DAMN IT," she explodes when Brandon opens his mouth with another question. She is tired of questions and had a headache from hell. "All of you just shut up, my mom should be home soon and I don't need her chewing me out for a fight I didn't even get into." Nakoma could already hear her mom berating her, telling her that she needed to behave more like a young lady instead of a barbarian.

"What time is it?"

"Um," she glances at her watch," 5:45." The others quickly said their goodbyes before heading to their own homes, not wanting to get grounded for the third time that summer because they didn't make it back before supper. Nakoma trudges up the stairs and into her room; going straight to the jewelry box her brother had built for her and putting the strange necklace in a hidden compartment.

"Nicky," her brother calls from the bottom of the stairs," dinner's done." Her brother always called her Nicky since he couldn't come up with a better nickname for Nakoma. She rushes downstairs and hugs her brother before heading towards the dining room. "Hold on." She stops and turns to face her brother.

"What?"

"Put on something nice, I have someone coming over tonight." Nakoma rolls her eyes and goes back upstairs to get dressed; she pulls off her black T-shirt, blue jeans, and sneakers. She replaces them with a sky blue spaghetti strap dress and matching flats before she brushes out her dark red hair and puts it in a clip—once that was finished, she walks downstairs. Her brother smiles down at her when she makes it to his side and offers her his arm like gentlemen did back in the seventeen hundreds.

"Why so formal tonight," she asks suspiciously, narrowing her eyes in a look that usually makes Jack spill any secret Nakoma wanted to know and even some she didn't.

"No reason." They walk into the dining room and Nakoma sees the man from the park. _Ah shit, can this day get any worse?_ _Why would Jack invite him into our house anyway?_ She tries to back up, but a tiger stands in front of the door, growling lowly. She turns back towards the man, taking in his olive toned skin, and long black and dark green hair, golden eyes. Now she felt sure that she could give the cops a decent description of her attempted murderer if he pulls anything.

"What the hell, I'm being held hostage in my own dining room?" Jack gently takes her arm and forces her to sit next to the man, a nervous chuckle escaping his lips when he notices the glare Nakoma sends his way. He's gonna get it later and he's gonna be sorry he ever crossed her.

"Nicky, I'd like you to meet the most evil person in the world—Chase Young!" _So this is the guy my brother fanboys over; I don't see anything squeal-worthy._ The man, Chase, smirks at the teenager and kisses the back of her hand. Nakoma jerks her arm away and accidentally elbows her brother in the process. He winces and drops to the floor with a pained squeak.

Nakoma just snorts and crosses her arms. "Serves you right for inviting him into the house in the first place, you so-called evil genius." Chase simply raises an eyebrow, golden eyes boring into her. The way he looked at her made her shiver, the intensity of his gaze familiar somehow yet scary all the same. She didn't like the way he studied her features like he already knew what he would find, especially since he'd barely gotten a glimpse of her at the park.

"You never mentioned you have little sister, Spicer," Chase says, his voice holding a smooth and seductive quality that makes Nakoma shiver no matter how much she hated it. Jack shrugs as he picks himself up and sits next to his sister, holding her hand tightly.

"Didn't think you needed to know," he responds, sitting up a little straighter the way all men do when they feel a threat to the person they care about.

"Do you remember the Shen-Gong-Wu that activated today?"

"Yeah, of course, it was the Melody Stone; Wuya never told what it does though..." Jack trails off, gazing over at his idol with an eyebrow raised, looking much like his younger sister just moments before.

"It's supposed to give the user eternal life and Heylin or Xiaolin powers, depending on which side they're on. Their master can partially control them, but usually that's just depends on if the master is stronger."

"How would they have a master," Nakoma asks, curiosity getting the better of her. Chase smiles down at her—not a happy smile, but one that says he knows something that she doesn't, but needs to. She hates that smile.

"Their master would be whoever touches them first when they put the necklace on." Nakoma scrunches her eyebrows together and shakes her head. That sounded like total BS to her and she was willing to bet that there was no such thing as a master of the stone; just something Chase came up with to get Jack's attention and hold it.

"That's stupid." Chase smirks at her again, and then turns his cold gaze to her brother, who was sitting on the edge of his seat. Nakoma looks around them impatiently, wondering where the hell their mother was and why they weren't eating yet. Honestly, she's just lucky that Jack knows how to cook and is actually good at it or else she would have starved as a toddler.

"Only a certain person can pick up the stone, though. Guess who that is." Nakoma's bad feeling came back again, niggling at her like she should know the answer already even though it continued to elude her.

"Uh...Wuya," Jack guesses," Katnappe…Me…Mom…Xiaolin Losers?"

"No, your little sister is the keeper."

…Do what now?


	2. Chapter 2

"What," Nakoma exclaims, eyes wide as she looks over at her brother, expecting him to say something useful. Jack begins to laugh, his eyes tearing up.

"You're kidding, right," he asks breathlessly. One look at Chase's serious face and Jack, if possible, turns paler than normal. "That means...But she's just my little sister...Not supposed to be of any use…Annoying," Jack rambles in a quiet voice, gazing between Chase and Nicky. Chase rolls his eyes and, standing up, grabs Nakoma's upper arm and forces her out of her chair. "Hey, let go of her!"

"Where is the stone," Chase demands, golden eyes staring intensely into Nakoma's pale gray ones. A shudder traveled up her spine as she met his glare, a part of her remembering the viciousness etched into his face from somewhere.

"Let me go you creep!" Nicky can feel a tingling sensation in the back of her mind and begins to walk up the stairs against her will with no control over what her body was doing. Once in her room, she reaches into her jewelry box and takes out the necklace out. The emerald swung slightly on the chain, glinting in the low sunlight. When the tingling stops and she has control back, she tries to punch Chase, but he easily takes hold of her wrist. That completes the simple spell connecting the Keeper and the Stone, allowing Chase slight control over Nicky.

"You can't hurt me, Nakoma, I'm your master." Jack bursts into the room seconds later, two Jackbots right behind him. He was panting slightly and pointing at Chase and his sister with a determination in his eyes Nicky has never seen before.

"Hey, hands off my sister," he shouts angrily. Chase just snaps his fingers and the pair disappear from Nicky's room and reappear in his Citadel, the rock surrounding them giving off enough cold that it makes Nicky shudder again. She really regrets not just wearing her jeans to dinner now. Chase sits at the head of a table and points to the seat on his right, raising an eyebrow at his hostage. Nicky just scoffs, crossing her arms and looking down at her shoes. She can hear the snap of Chase's fingers and then the sound of a door opening before the sight of a large Panther makes Nicky shriek and jump onto the seat all the same. She can tell from his smirk that Chase already knew this would happen. _Smug, little fucker_, Nicky thinks with a bitter glare sent in the older man's direction.

The Panther that had entered the room sets a tray of food on the table, one of the tray's silver handles no longer in the beast's mouth. Once Nicky was sure that she wouldn't be the animal's main course, she relaxes a little and sits normally. Even while sitting on the edge of her seat, Nicky's toes barely scrape the floor when she swings her legs back and forth. Another snap of Chase's fingers has a man dressed in Amazonian clothing bringing out a plate and a bowl—the plate set in front of Nicky and the bowl in front of Chase.

The smell coming from the green soup in Chase's bowl practically makes Nicky's mouth water as she stares down at her empty plate. "What's that," she asks quietly.

"Lao Mang Lone Soup, it's not for you though." Thinking he was just being stingy, Nicky rolls her eyes and piles some Macaroni onto her plate, though she mainly just pushed the food around her plate with her fork. Being stuck in the Prince of Darkness's dining room made you lose your appetite, but she managed a few bites anyway. When she was finished, she wiped her mouth with her napkin and folds her hands together in her lap. "That's all you're eating?"

"Yeah, why do you care," she growls.

"Because you need to keep up your strength if I'm to rule the world," he answers like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Nicky gives Chase a look that would make most people quake in their shoes, but Chase is unfazed and this makes her even angrier.

"Why do I need to be strong if you're the one that's going to be ruling?" She was curious and it never hurts to know what the baddie is planning, does it?

"Because I want my wife to look like the Queen she will be."

Nicky had just took a drink of water when he said that, the statement making her choke and beat against her chest with a fist to get her breath back. "YOUR WHAT?!" He sighs and stands up and, taking Nicky's left hand in his, he slides a simple and antique looking emerald ring on Nicky's ring finger. "Are you completely off your rocker? I'm not gonna marry you! I'm barely eighteen, you fucking pedophile!" A feeling of disgust fills her, but there's a trickle of guilt too and she's not entirely sure why that is.

"Technically, we're already married." She gives him a blank look—the one she's given her science teacher every day since ninth grade physics—it was the type of look that suggested she didn't have a damn clue what he was talking about.

"You are reincarnated," Chase explains," in your past life you were my wife, you were also on the Heylin side." Nicky's jaw drops open from the shock of it all and she leans back in her chair, staring ahead of her at nothing. He squeezes her hand reassuringly and kisses the back of it, then drops it suddenly like he'd been burned. "Come on, I'll show you to your room." Still trying to sift through the thoughts racing through her head, Nicky allows him to pull her after him through the maze he calls his home.

When they get to the room meant for Nicky, Chase gently forces her to lie down on the soft bed and pulls the heavy comforter up to her chin before walking out and leaving her in the dark. A tiger had followed them from the dining room and jumped up to lay beside Nicky, his warmth making her stop shivering so badly. _I miss my brother._

And then Nakoma was sound asleep.

* * *

The next morning, Nicky is awakened by someone shaking her shoulder. _Whoever is shaking my shoulder is about to lose their arm if they don't stop soon_. "What," she grumbles after a second. Not bothering to open her eyes to see the wrongdoer.

"Time to train," Chase replies smoothly. Nicky just growls, pulling the comforter up over her head while the corners of Chase's mouth curl up in a smirk. She should've known it would be Chase—he's the only one dumb or suicidal enough to try and wake her up before seven. "Get up, Nakoma."

"Five more minutes." She can feel someone grabbing her ankles, but she didn't react quick enough before Chase pulled her off the bed without even ruffling the comforter. Chase wasn't satisfied with Nicky in the floor with a dumbstruck expression and he picked her up easily, dropping her down in the chair set before the vanity. He couldn't help the breathy laugh that escapes when the teen let out a squeal of surprise. "I'd brush my hair if I were you," he smirks and walks out.

"I'd brush my hair if I were you," she mocks in a nasally voice before catching sight of her reflection in the mirror. "Ah!" Her thick hair was in knots and matted in some spots from her tossing and turning. _This is gonna hurt like a bitch_. "Hey, Chase, I need a little help here!" There was no way she could tackle this mess on her own. Chase walks back into Nicky's room with a scowl, taking in the teen's resolute expression. "Either you do it, or you can call my brother." He takes the brush and begins with only minimal grumbling. The first stroke he makes with the brush has Nicky throwing the closest object at his head. "That hurt you ass!" He growls, snaps his fingers, and Jack appears—Chase throws the brush at him, nailing the poor Goth in the shoulder.

"Deal with your sister," Chase snarls, storming out of the bedroom.

Jack stands up, rubbing his shoulder where the brush hit, and begins, gently, brushing Nicky's hair. He's been doing this since Nicky was four considering they were the only ones home most of the time besides the hired help, so he knew how to fix Nicky's hair without hurting her too badly.

"Are you okay," he asks when he was sure Chase is out of earshot. "Chase didn't, didn't, ah...You know..." Nicky blushes a dark red at what he's awkwardly hinting at, glaring at her reflection.

"No, he didn't."


	3. Chapter 3

I stand up and walk to the wardrobe. I open the doors to see...Dresses. There was absolutely no pants, shirts, or shorts; just dresses. I hate my life! Reluctantly, I pull out a long-sleeved black dress with medium purple lining. The sleeves billow out at the elbows. My door bangs open and I see the _last_ person I wanted to.

"Not you!" I exclaim. The woman smiles mockingly at me.

"Hello, Nakoma."

"Go away you old hag." She lunges at me and is thrown backwards by an unseen force.

"That's impossible," Wuya snarls. "You can't be the Keeper!" I slip my flats back on and walk into the hallway. A tiger walks up to me; the same tiger as last night. It leads me to a large room, lit by candelabras and chandeliers, in the center is a round table filled with food. Chase is sitting at the head of the table, eating soup and reading a magazine titled," Evil Housekeeping." I didn't know they had evil magazines, hmm. I look behind me, trying to find my brother. He is bickering with Wuya about Shen-Gong-Wu. I roll my eyes and sit beside Chase, the tiger at my feet. He snaps his fingers and a lion brings me a plate. I put eggs and bacon on it and drown them in maple syrup. I get odd looks from everyone as I eat.

"What," I asks through a mouthful of food. Wuya raises an eyebrow and points at my plate. "Yeah? Use your big girl words, hag, we all know you can. You never shut up," I mumble the last part.

"Why you little!" She stands up, holding a strange object in her hand. "Kazusu Atom!" A bolt of energy shoots out of the object and straight for me. Just like before, before it can reach me it bounces back at her and she barley dodges it.

"How did you do that," Chase asks curiously.

"I-I don't know. Maybe it's the stone..." Chase shakes his head dismissively.

"No, I had control of the last Keeper-you in a past life- and you never had power like that."

"What do you mean 'past life'," my brother demands.

"Perhaps it is natural and only just activated," Chase muses, completely ignoring Jack," or maybe it means one of the other stones have activated." He looks at Wuya and she shrugs her shoulders. He takes the Wu from her and hands it to one of his Jungle cats.

"If more Wu were activated my watch would beep," Jack says, looking at said watch. Chase looks at me, then the stone around my neck. I hold it up to my eye level and see a bit of black, smokey tendrils of smoke.

"Technically, the stones are not Shen-Gong-Wu." I nod, my eyes never moving from the emerald stone.

"I think I know where it is," I say softly after five minutes. Chase stands up and, taking my hand, helps me up. "Um, it's at...At..." I close my eyes to concentrate. It feels as if something is pulling me. I start walking and everyone follows. I stop when I reach a painting of myself. In the painting I was wearing a wine colored dress and my dark red hair is in a ribbon on the side of my head. Around my neck is a diamond on a silver chain. I reach out a hand and it goes _through_ the painting, I feel around until my fingers curl around something warm. I pull it out and see the necklace! "which one is this," I ask. Chase takes it out of my hands and smiles.

"Her favorite, the Moon stone."

"What does it do?"

"It will give the user the ability to move objects and other people." There's a bang down the hall and we run to see the door has been knocked down. Four people and a lizard-type-thing are in the dinning room; the people from yesterday at the park.

"Give us the stones, Chase Young, or suffer a humiliating defeat," the yellow, bald kid yells. I snort.

"Yeah, good luck with that Q-ball."

"Why, thank you my friend."

"She's being sarcastic, Omi," a Brazilian kid says. They all look my age except for the kid they call Omi.

"Wow, you're about as sharp as a bowlin' ball," I say, poking his large head.


	4. Chapter 4

~Chase's POV~Earlier that night~

Nakoma rushes past me with her brother and a tiger behind her. I'll check on her later, right now I need to put the Wu up so Wuya doesn't get any ideas. After that's done I feel two arms wrap around my waist accompanied by the hag's voice in my ear.

"The girl is weak, why do you like her?"

"Jealous?" She scoffs at the accusation and presses the front of her body against my back.

"Why would I be jealous of _her_?" I chuckle and step away from Wuya.

"Because, unlike you, she doesn't have to try to get everybody's attention, they're drawn to her; comes with being the Keeper." She growls and stalks off to sulk by one of the waterfalls. Jack walks in the room and over to me. "How is your sister?" _How can they even be related?_

"Upset, exhausted, and pissed off." I raise an eyebrow.

"I didn't take her as one that opened up."

"She doesn't and didn't, you can tell her emotions from her eyes. I'm going home, will you check on her before you go to bed?"

"Yes, I was planning on it anyways." Jack's fists clench.

"If she has any marks on her or is hurt-"

"Watch who you make threats to, Spicer. Why would I intentionally harm her?" He grumbles a reply, starts his heli-pack, and flies off. I roll my eyes as a large tiger walks into the room next._ I have a feeling I won't be getting_ _much rest tonight._ It changes into it's human form-a Roman soldier-and bows to me.

"My lord."

"Yes?" _Why can't I just be left alone?_

"The girl is sleeping now." _So this is the one who has attached itself to Nakoma's side._ "Though she seems to be having a nightmare."

"Very well return to your cat form and get some rest, I'll check on her." He nods, smiling slightly. "What is it?"

"She named me Colby." With those words he changes back into a tiger. I walk out of the room and straight to hers. She is tossing and turning, tears streaming down her face.

"Please," she mumbles," stop." _She sounds exactly like Akeira_(1). I sit on the edge of her bed and hold her hand. Soon, she calms down and her ragged breathing goes back to normal. _When sleeping, not having a nightmare_ _that is, she's quit beautiful; calm_. Her hair fans out like a veil. I stand up, shaking my head._ I can't get close to her_ _again!_ There's a bright flash of lightening and the light from it seems to make her pale skin glow. Once again, I shake my head. I snap my fingers and disappear to my room After changing into some comfortable pajama bottoms and removing my armor, under shirt, and gloves, I climb into my large bed.

~One Hour Later~

My mattress dips as someone sits on the edge of my bed. I crack one eye open to see who it is; Nakoma.

"What is it?"

"Thunder," she whispers," Can I sleep in here tonight?"

"Alright." She crawls under the blankets and lays her head on my chest, one arm over my stomach. I smirk at her , putting an arm around her shoulders. _Akeira and I used to sleep like this_, I muse before falling asleep. Soon I'm dreaming how it was 1500 years ago, back when I was a Xiaolin dragon and engaged...

~The Next Morning~

I hear a screech and a muffled thud. When I open my eyes I see Nakoma in the floor, wrapping the sheets around her.

"Why are you in my room," she yells. I sit up and smirk down at her.

"Take a closer look, we are not in your room." She looks around her and her eyes widen even more.

"Why am I in here? What did you do!"

"I did nothing," I say annoyed. "You came in here of your own free will and crawled in bed with me. I promise you, all we did was sleep."

"I don't believe you!"

"Well, believe what you will, but I have no intentions of doing _that_ with a child."

"I'm not a child!"

**(A/N): Akeira is Nakoma's name in her past life.**


	5. Chapter 5

~Chase's POV~Earlier that night~

Nakoma rushes past me with her brother and a tiger behind her. I'll check on her later, right now I need to put the Wu up so Wuya doesn't get any ideas. After that's done I feel two arms wrap around my waist accompanied by the hag's voice in my ear.

"The girl is weak, why do you like her?"

"Jealous?" She scoffs at the accusation and presses the front of her body against my back.

"Why would I be jealous of _her_?" I chuckle and step away from Wuya.

"Because, unlike you, she doesn't have to try to get everybody's attention, they're drawn to her; comes with being the Keeper." She growls and stalks off to sulk by one of the waterfalls. Jack walks in the room and over to me. "How is your sister?" _How can they even be related?_

"Upset, exhausted, and pissed off." I raise an eyebrow.

"I didn't take her as one that opened up."

"She doesn't and didn't, you can tell her emotions from her eyes. I'm going home, will you check on her before you go to bed?"

"Yes, I was planning on it anyways." Jack's fists clench.

"If she has any marks on her or is hurt-"

"Watch who you make threats to, Spicer. Why would I intentionally harm her?" He grumbles a reply, starts his heli-pack, and flies off. I roll my eyes as a large tiger walks into the room next._ I have a feeling I won't be getting_ _much rest tonight._ It changes into it's human form-a Roman soldier-and bows to me.

"My lord."

"Yes?" _Why can't I just be left alone?_

"The girl is sleeping now." _So this is the one who has attached itself to Nakoma's side._ "Though she seems to be having a nightmare."

"Very well return to your cat form and get some rest, I'll check on her." He nods, smiling slightly. "What is it?"

"She named me Colby." With those words he changes back into a tiger. I walk out of the room and straight to hers. She is tossing and turning, tears streaming down her face.

"Please," she mumbles," stop." _She sounds exactly like Akeira_(1). I sit on the edge of her bed and hold her hand. Soon, she calms down and her ragged breathing goes back to normal. _When sleeping, not having a nightmare_ _that is, she's quit beautiful; calm_. Her hair fans out like a veil. I stand up, shaking my head._ I can't get close to her_ _again!_ There's a bright flash of lightening and the light from it seems to make her pale skin glow. Once again, I shake my head. I snap my fingers and disappear to my room After changing into some comfortable pajama bottoms and removing my armor, under shirt, and gloves, I climb into my large bed.

~One Hour Later~

My mattress dips as someone sits on the edge of my bed. I crack one eye open to see who it is; Nakoma.

"What is it?"

"Thunder," she whispers," Can I sleep in here tonight?"

"Alright." She crawls under the blankets and lays her head on my chest, one arm over my stomach. I smirk at her , putting an arm around her shoulders. _Akeira and I used to sleep like this_, I muse before falling asleep. Soon I'm dreaming how it was 1500 years ago, back when I was a Xiaolin dragon and engaged...

~The Next Morning~

I hear a screech and a muffled thud. When I open my eyes I see Nakoma in the floor, wrapping the sheets around her.

"Why are you in my room," she yells. I sit up and smirk down at her.

"Take a closer look, we are not in your room." She looks around her and her eyes widen even more.

"Why am I in here? What did you do!"

"I did nothing," I say annoyed. "You came in here of your own free will and crawled in bed with me. I promise you, all we did was sleep."

"I don't believe you!"

"Well, believe what you will, but I have no intentions of doing _that_ with a child."

"I'm not a child!"

**(A/N): Akeira is Nakoma's name in her past life.**


	6. Chapter 6

~Nakoma's POV~

_I'm not a child! I am a young adult!_ And I tell him as much.

"Oh, you're not a child?" I glare at him, saying nothing."Then why are you throwing a tantrum?" _That's_ i_t! It's too early to be sarcastic, I'm gonna kick his ass!_ I lunge at him but he blocks me easily. "Calm down, you're just going to end up hurt."

"You sure about that?" I snatch up the Moon stone(A/N:Chase keeps the stones in his room) and throw him against the wall. I know my silver eyes have turned to a midnight blue like they always do when I'm mad. "I am not a child," I hiss through gritted teeth,"and I'm tired of people thinking I'm weak because of my size!" I keep him pressed against the wall. Chase has a mixed expression on his face of anger, shock, and amusement. I can feel my energy lessening, but I don't let up. He sneers at me when I fall to my knees, my hold on him broken. He lands gracefully on his feet and grabs my arm;forcing me to a room filled with candles.

"Meditate for a while to regain your strength, I'll come and get you when I feel you've done enough." _He's so arrogant!_ I sit down cross-legged, place my hands on my knees, close my eyes, and begin to relax. The next thing I know, someone pokes my shoulder and I fall backwards...About four feet.

"Ouch! What was that for?"

"I would congratulate you for lifting off the ground but-"

"I got off the ground," I say excitedly.

"You were sleeping," he finishes.

"Ah man! Well, at least I'm feeling better, like I can pick up a truck!...Or a cow...a toy one..." I ramble. He rolls his eyes and makes me stand up.

"Let's go, your brother wants to see you." _He sounds annoyed...Whew! Go Jack!_ We walk into the dinning room and see Jack on a chandelier, a leopard and a jaguar under it; tears are streaming down his face. "What'd you do to provoke them?"

"Animals have always hated, Jack." The corners of Chase's lips turn up into a half-smile. "Call them off, Chase."

"I don't know, it offers good entertainment." I sigh and lay my head on his shoulder.

"Yeah, well, I don't want tears in my salad." Chase snaps his fingers and the cats leave the room.

"You can come down now, Spicer." My brother lets go and before he hits the floor I shove Chase under him. Jack hits Chase and bounces to the floor.

"You're both hopeless," I mutter, sitting at the table and starting my salad. Chase stands up and brushes off his armor.

"Not funny," Jack glares," I got a cut." I pull a band aide out of my pocket and put it over the _tiny_ cut. What can I say, if you have a brother like mine then it's not unusual to have some in your pocket. "Thanks," he murmurs, sitting down. I nod and look at Chase.

"What, I can't show sympathy?"

"I just didn't expect you to."

"You don't expect a lot, do you?" He glares at me. "Oh, if looks could bruise."

"Loose the attitude."

"Or what? You'll turn into a Lizard?" I can see him trying to restrain himself from doing something stupid. "This is the beauty of being a child, everything bad I do, every little exaggeration, will be because I'm a child." I smirk at him and stand up. "Goodnight, boys, one of us is going to be responsible by going to bed at a _descent_ hour." I walk out of the room and to my own.


	7. Chapter 7

_Okay, so I _**might**_ have taken the whole 'I'm a child' thing a bit to far, _**might have**_. In my defense, though, he brought it on himself! It serves him right for calling me that! _I take a book off the shelf next to my bed. The Saga of Larten Crepsley:Birth of a Killer. Maybe I can get a few pointers on how to kill Chase, wait, he can't die...I can always torture him. Yeah, I'll force him to watch Barney or the Telletubbies over and over. I laugh evilly and begin to read. Before I can get two pages in, there's a knock at the door.

"what?" The door opens and Colby and Jack walk in. Colby's still in cat form. "Hey."

"Hey. What was that all about," Jack asks, his thumb pointed over his shoulder.

"I thought I'd give Chase a hard time."

"Well, he's really mad, like, Wuya-stays-away, mad."

"Holy crap, that's mad...Oh well," I say cheerily.

"His cats won't even go near him."

"Sounds like I've filled my quota for the night."

"It's not funny! He threw a plate at me head!"

"He did what!" _No one bullies my brother, well, except me. _I storm out of the room and to Chase's study.

"Sis, wait! He missed, I swear!"

"I don't care! He thinks he's all big and bad for picking on a sixteen year old , well, I'll show him that _he's_ the insect!" Objects around me start to float and the doors to his study are flung open. Chase stands up and when he looks me in the eyes, I can see the same restrained anger. "You worthless, piece of crap! Why don't you leave Jack out of what has nothing to do with him!" Books fly off shelves, vases explode, and windows crack. The only time I've ever been this angry was when my older cousin had tried to beat up Jack and myself. He'd ended up in the hospital with seven stitches and a broken ankle.

"Get out," Chase commands. "Before I loose my control." Jack runs down the hall, screaming like a girl. "Now," Chase growls. The doors to the room slam shut.

"Forget it, I'm through with taking orders from you! You think you can beat me, then let's go!" He lunges forward and I catch him by his arm and fling him into a bookshelf. "Get up! Come on Mister high and Dragon mighty!" He stands up and grabs me by my throat; bringing our faces inches apart.

"Do not mess with me, Princess," he threatens.

"Who are you calling 'Princess'? Princess's are _weak_ and I will never be weak again, understand?" I try to brake free but his grip tightens. When I show no signs of stopping he does something that surprises the both of us...He _kisses_ me. My eyes widen to the point that they probably look like dinner plates, but I did nothing to stop him. Instead, I wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him back. The only thing that broke us apart was my brother bursting through the doors; a heroic look on his face that quickly changes to surprise then mildly pissed off. _If your little sister was in the arms of the most evil dude on_ _the planet, wouldn't you have the same reaction?_ Jack pulls me behind him and pokes Chase in the chest.

"Keep your hands off her," he roars. "If you touch her again I'll be sure to find the most torturous thing I can and use it on you!" _Damn, I've never seen this side of Jack!_


	8. Chapter 8

_I can't believe I kissed him back_, I think, shocked, as Jack drags me back to my room. _He kissed me!_ Suddenly I feel dirty and sick to my stomach. _How could I just give in like that? It won't happen again,_ I promise myself. Once back in my room Jack begins to pack my stuff, muttering to himself. Right now, all I want to do is sleep. In dreams you have nothing to worry about. Before I can drift off I begin to think about the nightmares I've been having lately. A shadowy beast attacking me, the feeling of being betrayed(though I don't know why), and a feeling that someone should be there with me but wasn't. I'm jerked out of my reverie by Jack shaking my shoulder.

"Come on, let's get out of here." I stand up and realize someone else is in the room; Raimundo. _Freaking joy! Oh how I love sarcasm. _

"What are you doing here," I ask bluntly.

"Jack said you needed help getting away from Chase."

"And you were promised the return of your Sword of the Storms."

"Yeah, that too, now come on before we're caught." I step through a portal, made by the Golden Tiger Claws, and into a large room. The other three monks, the lizard, and an old man look shocked to see us; namely Jack and me.

"Hi," I say happily, waving at them.

"Aren't you the girl who kicked Raimundo's butt the other day," the girl asks.

"Yup!"

"And you're on the Heylin side?"

"I don't have a side actually."

"Oh really?"

"Yes really," I snap, annoyed at all her questions. "I'm Nakoma, but y'all can call me Nikkie." The cowboy comes over and shakes my hand.

"Nice to meet ya, I'm Clay. This little lady right here is Kimiko Tohomiko, the little guy is Omi, and this is Master Fung," he introduces.

"Hi," the monks say. Master Fung just nods to me. I smile, then take a quick step backwards when Omi tries to hug me.

"I only have one rule that I reinforce; Two feet distance at all times." Omi takes another step forward. "You're pushing it cue-ball!" He jumps back behind Clay.

"Your eyes," he says, shocked.

"Her eyes change colours when she's mad," my brother explains. "Normally they stay silver." _Next he'll tell them what I'm allergic to_, I think jokingly. "If she gets sick _do not _give her Acetaminophen, she's allergic to it; makes her throat swell shut. She can't eat peanut butter or have anything with grape artificial flavoring. Don't let her watch Zombie movies before going to bed, she'll have horrible nightmares that you can't wake her up from."

"Hey bro, I think they get it."

"Maybe you should just stay with me."

"Are you kidding! Chase would brake your robots like they were twigs, at least the monks stand a chance; they're more like strong twigs."

"Thanks for the confidance," Raimundo says sarcastically.

"No problem, it was my pleasure." We glare at each other, the only thing that stopped us from fighting was Kimiko stepping between us and Clay holding my arms. "Let me go, I'm sure I can beat him again," I exclain.

"You got lucky the last time."

"Or you just _suck_!"

"Ahem," Master Fung says loudly. We look over at him. "You must work together if you wish to remain safe, Chase Young is ver decptive and would turn you against each other if it meant he would rule the world."

"You see," the lizard says happily," was it so hard not to speak in riddles?" Master Fung glares at him.

"Aw," I exclaim," what a cute little lizard...gecko...thing." The lizard grows into a Dragon.

"Don't call me that, I am a Dragon!"

"Yeah, I kind've got that with the transformation." He begins to grumble about something so I turn to the others. "What's his name?"

"Dojo," Omi answers. I look at Jack and before I can ask he says," No we can't have one."

"But-"

"I don't care if you'd take care of it."

"Gir."

"Don't gir me!"

"I'll gir you if I want to!"

"Alright," Raimundo interrupts," that's enough!" I turn and glare at him.

"Don't make me hate you already."

"Or what?" I try to lunge at him but, once a-freakin-gain, Clay staops me.

"Let me go!"

"You need to calm down! You heard what Master Fung said." Grudgingly I relax and force myself to remain calm. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Kimiko whisper something in Raimundo's ear before kissing his cheek. _Yeck!_ My encounter with Chase comes rushing back to me, making me shiver. I lay my head on Jack's shoulder and he wraps an arm prtectivly around my own.

"Love you," I mumble.

"Love you too, sis." He hands Omi my suitcase. "When I come to see her tomorrow there had better not be a _single hair_ out of place, or I promise you, not even Chase Young will be able to help you," Jack threatens.

**(A/N):Yes! I finally remembered how to spell "cue-ball", I feel so accomplished lol.**


	9. Chapter 9

The monks stare at my brother in complete shock as he flies out of the temple.

"When did Jack Spicer plant a back bone," Omi asks.

"Eh, you mean grow a spine," Raimundo asks.

"That is rediculous, how can you grow a spine?"

"Wow," I say sarcastically," there must be a lot of air in that head 'cause it's sure as shit not full of brains."

"Hey! My head is full of brains, not that a female would understand." Kimiko and I both grab him and when we're done he is covered in bruises and scratches.

"You were saying," Kimiko asks.

"Yeah, I didn't quite catch it."

"Nothing," he exclaims hastily," I said nothing! My lips are zipped shut!"

"You mean your lips are sealed?"

"That too!"

"Can someone show me to my room?" Clay takes my suitcase from Omi.

"Follow me lil lady." We walk to another building, on the way there I notice an olympic sized pool. _Sweet!_ My room has a twin sized bed with white blankets and pillows, the walls are also white. My wardrobe is made a lightly stained wood, Oak I think, There's one large window with- yup, you gussed it-white curtains. _I feel as if I'm in a hospital!_

"Whoever your decorator is, fire them," I say dryly. Clay chuckles and I take my suitcase from him. It's thrown beside the wardrobe. "So, is it like, the bare necessities here or something?"

"In some ways, yes." We laugh again. _I think I'm gonna like this guy._ "Do you like robots as much as your brother?"

"No, I'd rather be reading or in a fight." He raises an eyebrow questionaly. "I don't pick the fights..." He continues to stare disbelievingly at me. "It's not my fault I have a short temper."

"I think you and Kimi will get along then."

"Yeah?"

"Yep, she's got a mighty fierce temper."

"We'll either be the best of friends, worst of enemies, or not pay attention to the other."

"Have a lot of experience with that, do you?"

"Let's just say I have a lot of enemies." He stares at me, wide-eyed. "I'm kidding," I lie. "Jeez, take a joke, cowboy." His face goes back to its normal relaxed expression.

"Well, I'll go and let you get settled." Before he leaves I grab his arm. When he turns to look at me I smile.

"You wanna swim with me later, around midnight?"

"Sounds like a plan." _God, I love his accent!_ After I unpacked my suitcase I started looking for anywhere I could put my books. There was nowhere so I'll have to ask Jack about it tomorrow. Dojo is sent to tell me that dinner is ready so I follow him to the room I first appeared in. The monks and Master Fung are all seated around a table. "?Nikkie can sit by me," Clay smiles, patting the empty seat next to him. Smiling shyly, I accept his offer and start to put Sweet and Sour chicken on my plate as well as some white rice. The thing that surprised the others is that I fixed my plate without removing my hands from my lap.

"How did you do that," Raimundo asks. I pull the Moon stone necklace from around my neck. "But I thought only the Keeper could control the stones."

"I am the Keeper." He stares at me wide-eyed. "What?"

"The last Keeper was a girl though, it was supposed to be a boy this time."

"Unless the Keeper was reincarnated," Master Fungs says, calmly sipping his tea.

"Reincarnated, _her_?"

"Why is it so bad I was reincarnated?"

"The stones keep her alive," Master Fung interrupts. "When she died the stones stopped working, she was reborn so they wouldn't fade."

"What do you mean 'fade?'"

"If a Keeper isn't re-born or another isn't born then the stones will turn to ash." The rest of dinner is silent as we all process what we've learned. After dinner the monks and I clean up, then I went to my room. Flopping backwards on the slightly too fluffy bed, I pick up reading _Birth of A Killer_. When I was half-way done with it I hear the song Raise Your Glass by P!nk coming from my bag. I dig through it until I find my phone; Kaytie's calling. "Yellow," I say.

"Where are you?"

"I'm on vacation."

"Why didn't you say anything? We were worried sick!"

"One, it was last minute and two, I didn't wany any of y'all trailing after me."

"That happened one time! You say it like we're stalkers!"

"Sometimes I wonder."

"Trust me Nikkie, if we were stalkers we'd stalk someone worth stalking."

"Are you saying I'm not stalk worthy?"

"Yeah." We both laugh. Another five minutes of talking later and there's a light knock on my door.

"Gotta go, Kaytie, I'll call you tomorrow."

"Kay, see you." I hang up and throw the phone on the bed.

"Come in!" No response; the door stays closed. Sighing, I get up to open it and see a big, pale fist coming towards my face. The last conscious thought that went through my head was, _What the hell did I do now?_


	10. Chapter 10

~Chase's POV~Earlier that day~

I watch as Jack drags his sister down the hall, the shocked look on her face mirrors my own. _Why did I do that? She _is not _Akeira no matter how similar they look! _I shake my head and begin to clean up my study. My thoughts begin to dtray to my past which I rarely let them do.

~Flashback 1,500 Years~

_A young girl walks through the temple gates, accompanied by Master Qin and Dojo._

_"Young monks, I'd like you to meet Akeria Moore, my new apprentice. I trust you will welcome her and show her around the temple."_

_"Yes, Master Qin," we chorus. He nods and walks off. Dashi is the first to move towards her, kissing her hand._

_"Hello Akeira, I'm Dashi. This giant is Guan and he is Chase." We both nod respectivly to her. "If you want to be the best in your training then I suggest you watch me the most." He pulls her closely to him._

_"Thanks for the advice, but I think I'll do fine on my own." She can't be more than thirteen years. "In fact, I'm sure I could beat you in a fair fight." Well, she's definatly confidant of herself._

_"I can't turn down a challenge." We all race to the training grounds and the two get in fighting stances._

_"Make your move." Dashi rushes towards her and is easily flipped over her shoulder. The thing that surprised all of us is that she didn't use her hands! _

_"How did you do that," Guan asks, shocked._

_"She has the stones," I sya excitedly. "She is the keeper!" Akeira nods her head, blushing from all the attention she was, and is, getting._

_"But that's not fair," Dashi yells. "You used your stones!"_

_"I never said you couldn't use your element now did I, Oh Smart One?"_

_"Ha, she has a point Dashi." He glares playfully at her. The rest of the day we practice with her, each of us getting our butts thoroughly kicked._

_"You are very good," Guan comments, a rare thing for him to do._

_"Thanks." She actually didn't use her powers this time and we discovered she is very good at Martial Arts and Tai Chi. Not to mention the fact that she is beautiful._

_"I have never seen someone with silver eyes," I say, thinking outloud._

_"I got them because my favorite stone is the Moon stone." We all look at her with matching confused faces. "It has a silver tint."_

_"..."_

_"What ever stone is the Keeper's favorite is the color there eyes will turn._

_"Oh, okay." She smiles, slightly blushing. I can tell, though, that she will adjust fine here. She's cocky and sarcastic like Dashi, Strong like Guan, and a quick thinker like I am._

_~Two Years Later~_

_"Happy birthday. Akeira," Dahi shouts, banging the gong loudly. It is too early to get up! I hear groans from the others as they wake up._

_"C'mon Dashi, let the birthday girl sleep in," Akeira shouts._

_"Yeah, and let us sleep in too," Guan agrees," early birthday gifts!" I chuckle and rise off my mat, dress in my normal blue shirt and pants(1), and walk into her room...Err, cubicle would better describe it. I lay down beside her and whisper in her ear._

_"Wake up sleeping beauty."_

_~End flashback~_

I growl and punch the wall clossect to me, leaving a large hole in it. _How can that girl cause these memories to surface! _I storm down the hallway to her room, no, not Nakoma's; Akeira's. The room is just how she left when she died, clean of course, I do the cleaning myself. The large canopy bed's curtains are tightly closed. Slowly, I walk over and pull them back. There's nothing there, I don't know what I was expecting. _Yes I do, I was expecting her to be lying there. I was expecting her to crack one eye open and smile at me. I was hoping for her to sit up and wrap her arms around my neck, hoping to get one of the sweet kisses on my lips that I was so used to. _I growl at my foolishness and punch one of the black, silk pillows. The perfume she used to wear fills my nose. _At least there's _that _difference between the two girls; Akeira smelled like roses and Nakoma smells like cinnamon. _I sigh, straighten out the pillow, and walk out of the room. _What can I do now?_

"Colby." The tiger walks out of the shadows and sits in front of me. "Why are you following me?" I snap my fingers and he turns into his human form.

"Nakoma is gone, my Lord. Jack Spicer and a monk took her."

"What." I growl. I can feel the Dragon in me trying to come out.

"They went to the temple."

"Yes, I know." I walk into the throne room and turn Colby into a raven. "Spy on her." It nods and flies off. An eye(NAME?) grows out of the floor and I can see whatever Colby does. Soon he lands on a tree branch right outside her room. Nakoma is talking to the Dragon of earth. When he tries to leave she grabs his arm. **Mine**, the Dragon in me growls. _I agree. _The cowboy leaves and she begins to unpack. I watch her the rest of the day. She doesn't seem to get along with the Dragon of wind to well. "Come home, Colby." I snap my fingers and appear outside her door. I knock and hear a muffled come in. A few minutes later she opens the door and I punch her just hard enough to knock her out.

**(1) The clothes Chase wears when Omi goes back in time to keep him on the side of good.**


	11. Chapter 11

~Nakoma's POV~

I wake up laying on something comfortable with a _huge_ headache. Memories from last night flash through my head.

"Chase Young, you ass," I shout angrily. Said ass appears at the foot of my bed, making me jump.

"That's no way to treat your host and Master."

"You think I care?" He chuckles and sits down beside me. I scoot to the far edge of the bed. "Why am I here?"

"You are mine."

"Only in my nightmares." He puts his hand under my chin, forcing me to look into his reptillian eyes.

"You are mine and always will be." That's when I realize he isn't talking me exactly, but the person I was in my past life. My hand unconsciously goes up to cup his cheek. Suddenly, I'm standing in front of my bed, but my body is still on the bed with Chase. _Out of body experience? Haven'y hady one of those since I was very sick in sixth grade! My past life must be trying to brake through. _"Chase," my body whispers with a slight Arabic accent.

"Akeira?"

"Yes." She smiles and leans forward, kissing him on the cheek. He puts his hand over the one she has resting on his cheek.

"I missed you."

"I missed you too." She hugs him tightly, tears streaming down her face. "Oh, how I've missed you!" I can feel her emotions and even shed a few tears with sounds about seventeen years old. A few more minutes of them holding each other and I can feel myself getting pulled back into my body. My throat feels raw and my face hurts. _Damn, that girl can cry!_ "Chase," I ask, my face pressed uncomfortably against his armor. "Three second rule!" He jumps and falls backwards off the bed. I get a rose off the nightstand near my bed and stick it under his chin. "What's this, a badass caught off his guard?"

"That makes no sense."

"It would if you watched Lord of the Rings-OUCH!" There's a sharp pain in my lower stomach. "What was that?" He actually smiles. _I'm in pain and that bastard has the nerve to smile! When I get out of the fetal position, I'm gonna feed him to rabid Canadian Geese! _"Ah!" He gently takes my hand in his.

"You need to relax."

"Easy for you to say!"

"I know what's wrong-" I hear the rest of his sentance telepathically.

"...I'm pregnant..."

**Yes, I know it's super short, but I have a good excuse! I'm sick...Kay, so maybe it's not the best excuse but it's the one you're getting. **


	12. Chapter 12

I groan and flop back on the bed. _This is just great!_ "How the heck did that happen? I've never even had a boyfriend before!"

"Akeira was seven weeks pregnant when she died; the baby must have been passed on to you."

"That makes no sense!"

"Just like your, whatever it was, from Ring of the Lords."

"That was a legitimate quote from _Lord of the Rings_! _This_ is muy loco!" He sighs and lies down on the bed, absentmindedly playing with a lock of my hair.

"I don't want you to be too far away from me or Colby, understand?"

"Why, you don't trust me?"

"That and you're carrying my child."

"Ours," I grumble.

"What?" I'm carrying this baby, so it's mine too," I immediately begin to blush after I say this. He chuckles and brushes a strand of my thick hair off my face and behind my ear.

"I guess you are right." He places his hand on my stomach. "It is a girl, what will her name be?"

"Um, Anabelle Denise."

"It's a beautiful name," Chase murmurs, kissing the top of my head. He doesn't remove his hand from my stomach, instead he begins to rubs circles on it. "Anabelle will be powerful with our powers combined." _Is he talking to me or Akeira? Most likely the latter. _"I'm talking to you, Nakoma." _Can he read my thoughts? _"Yes I can." _Don't do it anymore! _"Fine." I glare at him.

"If it wouldn't hurt me, I'd punch you." He chuckles and lays back.

"Get some rest; it's going to be a _long_ nine months."

"Don't tell me-" He pushes a spot on my shoulder and I fall sound asleep.

~Chase's POV~Present~

I press on a certain spot on her shoulder and she falls sound asleep. _It's going to be a long nine months indeed. Hopefully her cravings won't be something that even my Jungle cats won't eat. _I shudder, remembering some of the cravings that Akeira had. Nakoma rolls over and lies her head on my armor-less chest. I fall asleep easily, easier in fact, than I'd like to admit.

~Dream/flashback~

_Slowly her eyes open and she smiles at me._

"_Come on, let's get up before Dashi-" I'm cut off when a powerful gust of wind forces Akeira, Guan, and me into the court yard. Dashi flies backwards a few feet and lands on his butt._

"_That's what you get," Akeira growls. Over the past two years, we've learned rather quickly that she isn't a morning person. Before anyone can laugh, a loud roar is heard. We turn to find an army of giant, rock creatures coming quickly towards us; Wuya at its head. We all rush forwards, ready for the challenge. All of us keep an eye on Akeira-she's two weeks pregnant-as we fight our own battles. One of the creatures nearly steps on me, but Dashi, Guan and my wife(1) combine their powers and turn it to ash! As soon as all of the creatures are destroyed, Dashi takes out a puzzle box; it entraps the witch, turning her into a wisp of purple smoke. I walk over to Akeira and hug her tightly. She collapses in my arms, her eyes shut._

"_Help!" I exclaim worriedly. Guan checks her pulse._

"_We need to get her to the infirmary." I pick her up and sprint there. Dashi blows the doors open and I lay her down on a cot._

"_Go get Master Qin," I command. Soon my friends are dragging me out of the room so Master won't be disturbed. After what seemed like hours, but was only twenty minutes, Master Qin came out and smiled at me._

"_She and the baby are fine, but I do not want her to leave her bed for a few weeks." I nod and walk into the room. Her eyes are still closed, but her breathing is back to normal. I hold her left hand and look at the ring on her finger; it is a silver band with an Emerald set into it. I look for injuries. Her right eye and that side of her face are bruised and swollen, so is her ankle. A light scar runs from the bottom of her left ear, down her neck, and stops at her collarbone; from a different fight with the hag Wuya. The scar is so light that you'd have to be looking for it to see it. Her eyes flutter open and she smiles up at me, I can tell she wants to squeeze my hand but is too weak to do so._

~End dream/flashback~

I wake up and don't realize why until I see that Nakoma isn't in bed. I almost grew worried but when I felt a light breeze, I knew she was on the balcony.

"Nikkie," I ask groggily. What are you doing up in the middle of the night?"

"I'm usually awake by four." Sighing, I stand up and walk over to her, instinctively wrapping my arms around her waist and resting my chin on her head.

"Why?" _How can it be four already? _

"I don't know, mental alarm clock or something. Why are you up?"

"I didn't feel you next to me."

"Are you telling me that Chase Young, the most evil, bad ass, _not_ in a cowboy duster, was actually awaken because his...Whatever I am to you, decided she couldn't handle your morning breath and got up?"

**(1): Akeira**

**(A/N): I decided to write a little scene where Chase and Nakoma actually got along. Why? Cause I was bored in my sixth hour class.**


	13. Chapter 13

~Nakoma's POV~

"Ha, ha, very funny," Chase says sarcastically. I step away from him and walk back into his room.

"I'm going back to bed; will you make me some chocolate chip cookies?"

"Yes."

~Clay's POV~

"Tell me again what happened," Jack says, hyperventilating.

"I went to her room to see if she was ready to go swimming, her door was wide open, I walked inside, and found this note(1)," I explain for the seventh time today.

"Give me the note."

"It's in your hand, partner."

"Oh…Right." He reads over it again and throws it on the table. I pick up the note and begin reading it to myself.

_Xiaolin Monks,_

_I've taken Nakoma back with me to safety. We cannot let Chase Young get to her; if he does, there will be 10,000 years of darkness. With her by his side, he will be invincible. I am sorry for taking her without your knowledge, but I cannot let the prophecy be fulfilled._

_Sincerely,_

_Master Monk Guan_

Well, the only thing we can do is go see Guan," says Kimi, taking Rai's hand.

"Something doesn't feel right about that letter." I scratch the back of my head, thinking. "What prophecy is he talking about?" Dojo rushes in, holding a scroll.

"This one!" He unrolls it and lays it down so we can all read it.

_One day a great evil will rise and, with the help of an innocent, will take over the world. They will have a child together. This child will be the key to either saving or destroying the world._

"That doesn't sound good," Jack whimpers.

"How do we know that it is Jack's sister the prophecy is talking about," Omi asks.

"Because," Dojo explains," it was last time."

"Let's get going then," Raimundo says, jumping up.

"Guys," I exclaim," I don't think she's with Master Monk Guan, he would've told us."

"We'll split up; Kimi, Dojo, and I will find Guan. You, Jack, and Omi will go to Chase's."

~Chase's POV~

I watch the monks and Spicer while smirking. _Perfect, not only will I have Omi but I will also have Spicer to feed to my cats. The Dragon of earth may be a problem, though. _Nakoma walks into my throne room, munching on a Snickers bar dipped in Vanilla ice cream.

"Hello," she says happily. _Thank you whatever gods are out there, she's no longer throwing carrots at my head! _"What'cha doing?"

"Nothing, darling."

"You're such a liar. Do you have a computer?"

"No, why?"

"I wanted to I.M. my brother."

"You'll be seeing him soon."

"Did you know you get _no_ cell reception here?" I roll my eyes as she continues to ramble. _Akeira did it too, _I remember. I sit down and she sits on my lap. _That's new._

"What are you doing?"

"Sitting on your lap."

"I know that, but why?"

"My feet her and I didn't want to sit on the floor." She lays her head on my shoulder and snuggles closer to me. "It's cold, do something about it."

"If you were not the Keeper _or_ carrying my child, you would be in the dungeon.

"Correction, I wouldn't be here at all." _She makes a good point, but I'm not telling her that. _"Will you let Colby turn into his human form?"

"Why would I do that?"

"So I'll get out of your hair."

"I don't know, I could get used to this." She's currently running her fingers through my hair, massaging me slightly.

"Jack likes it when I do this too." _That's a cheap shot! _I snap my fingers and the tiger comes in, I snap again and he turns into his human form.

"Keep her company."

"Yes, my Lord."

"Was that so hard," Nakoma asks, standing up.

"Leave before I change my mind."

"Clay's POV~Two Hours Later~

"Are we almost there, Omi," I ask tiredly.

"I think so." I look up from the ground and see the monster-shaped mountain.

"How are we supposed to get up there?" Jack and Omi hop off my back and I straighten up, my back cracking slightly.

"Well, I can use my heli-pack," Jack says smugly. I make a pillar of earth shoot up under me, it stops so I can step off it and on the long bit of earth that serves as the creature's jaw. Omi uses a column of water to do the same; Jack lands next to us.

"It's about time you showed up," Chase says from the doorway. Between him and a Roman soldier is Nakoma, eating chocolate frosting.

"Nakoma," Jack and I shout at the same time. I feel a strange pang in my chest seeing her next to Chase.

**(1) After Chase had brought Nakoma back to his Citadel, he sent Colby to leave a note on her bed at the temple.**


	14. Chapter 14

~Nakoma's POV~  
Clay's eyes flash with anger when he see's Chase.

"Chase Young, prepare for a humiliating defeat," Omi shouts.

"Come on, Chrome dome, come up with a new catch phrase," I say in between bites of chocolate.

"That is a very rude thing to say to your rescuer."

"I haven't been rescued yet," I point out, annoyed.

"Well, be silent so we can fight Chase Young for your freedom!"

"Don't tell me to shut up!" I can see Chase pinching the bridge of his nose. "How have you not beat the crap outta this kid yet," I ask Clay.

"That's what I do in practice." I sit down cross-legged and point to Omi.

"If you beat anyone today, make it Shorty." Chase smirks at me.

"I intend to beat them all."

"No, if you harm my brother I will personally shove you off your own mountain." I smile at him and lay my head against Colby's leg. "Let the fighting commence." Jack walks over to me and begins to rub my shoulders. The two monks attack Chase and an epic battle ensues; all the while Jack, Colby, and I make a fire and roast marshmellos. Night turns to day, to night again and still the fight rages on. I brake out my guitar and we begin to sing the Campfire Song off of Spongebob. Colby is a natural at it! Finally Chase gets the better of the monks and beats them.

"Are you happy now," Chase asks me. "I beat them."

"That was the longest fight I ever saw, it shouldn't take you _that long_ to beat a thirteen and sixteen year old, pretty boy." He picks me up over his shoulder.

"Put all three of them in the dungeons. I want someone guarding them 24/7," Chase commands to one of his cats.

~Chase's POV~

The monks have improved, but are still no match for me. I sit Nakoma on the bed and cover her up before walking to my side of the bed and laying down. I no longer wear my armor because Nakoma grew feed up with it and threw it out. My body is aching, but I will be better by tomorrow. I close my eyes and allow myself to drift off.

~Dream/Flashback~Akeira's POV~

_Chase has been gone all day so Dashi and Guan took turns helping me around. I am now seven weeks pregnant! Dojo likes to joke that I have hollow legs since I've been devouring food and havn't gained any weight. Right now I'm laying on my mat, sewing a dress. Loud screams of alarm and terror reach me, as does the acrid smell of smoke, and I stand straight up. Did Wuya escape?_

_"Akeira!"_

_"Chase?" He walks calmly into the room, a smile on his face. "What's going on out there?" He takes my arm in a tight grip and drags me after him. Jungle cats are attacking the temple! Chase takes me into one of the unused rooms and in the center of it is Dashi, Guan, and Master Qin._

_"Akeira," they all cry out, terrified yet angry looks on their faces._

_"What is going on," I whimper. I turn to face Chase and, for the first time since he returned, look into his eyes. They are no longer a warm amber color, but a hard gold and slitted like a snake's! This is not the man I loved, this man, this _beast_ is evil. He forces me to my knees and binds me with some rope._

_"You see, Akeira? The Xiaolin side is weak, and no wife of mine can be weak." He bends down to whisper in my ear. "Are you Xiaolin, _Princess_, are you _weak_?"_

~End Dream/Flashback~

~Nakoma's POV~

I wake up in a cold sweat. I've been having that same nightmare almost every night since I turned thirteen. I can still feel the pain as a claw is run down my cheek.

"Nakoma? What's wrong," asks Chase, concern evident in his voice. Until now, the man was just a shadow with a name, now it has a face.

"You did it!"

"Did what?"

"You hurt her, hurt _me_!"

"Nikkie, what are you talking about?" I get up and run out of his room. _He's the one that plauges my dreams at night! He's the reason I was afraid to get close to people! It's all his fault! How could I have trusted him? _I run down the stone steps to the dungeon, dismissing the cats on guard duty.

~Clay POV~

Nakoma bursts into the dungeon, wearing only her nightgown and crying her eyes out.

"Jack," she cries. He walks to the front of the cell and strokes the hair out of her face. "He did it! He's the one who caused my nightmares!"

"Shh, it's alright. Everything will be alright," he whispers soothingly, glaring at the wall behind her.

"It won't be alright! Jack, I'm carrying her baby. The baby I was meant to have 1,500 years ago."

"Stand back." She complies reluctantly and Jack begins to pick the lock. When he's finally done, he pushes the door open and hugs his sister tightly.

"I know you guys are having a moment, but we really gotta go," I say, gently taking Nakoma's hand. She takes a step forward and falls to her knees. "I'm the strongest so I'll carry her." Jack agrees reluctantly and I pick her up bridal style. We run out of the dungeon, heading to safety.


	15. Chapter 15

~Nakoma's POV~

"Do you have any pizza at the temple?"

"I don't think so, but I can probably make you some."

"Thank you, Cowboy." He nods. "Let me down; my legs are falling asleep and you need to take a brake." He looks over at Jack who nods. My legs feel wobbly but I can walk on them.

"Are you alright," Omi asks.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I stare at the ground; letting the others take the lead. Nobody says anything else the rest of the journey, but one thing is on all of our minds, why isn't Chase coming after us? Once back at the temple Jack kisses the top of my head and flies away. Clay leads me to a new room…Well it was more like a cubicle than anything else. _The strange thing is, it feels familiar_. On the floor is a mat and in the corner is a dresser with my bag on top of it.

"You'll be sleeping between me and Omi." I look at him with wide eyes.

"I'm claustrophobic; this room is testing the waters."

"I _meant_, my room is on this side and Omi's is on that side," he says, pointing first to the right then the left.

"Okay, that makes more sense." He laughs and pats my shoulder.

"I'll go make your pizza; you should lie down and rest."

"Gladly!" I had walked over halfway to the temple. "See you in a bit?"

"Yeah."

"Hey." He turns to look at me. "Maybe we could take that swim." At this he smiles, slightly blushing.

"'Course, that'd be great." He walks out and I pull a book out of my bag; the number two in the Fearless series by Francine Pascal. I'm only at the part where Heather talks about Ed's accident.

~Chase's POV~

I watch as Nakoma, the monks, and Jack flee from my palace. _Go ahead and run, but when my daughter is born you can bet you will be seeing me again, Nakoma. _I punch the thing closest to me, which happened to be Wuya. _Well, that brightens my day somewhat. _

"What was that for," she growls. "It's not my fault you can't keep control over a fifteen year old."

"_Do not push me, hag_. Why are you here?"

"To tell you that your precious Nakoma let the prisoners out, but I see you already know this." I roll my eyes skyward and pray to whoever's listening that Wuya gets hit by a bus soon! I walk to my room, shut and _lock_ my door, go to my desk and pull out a small, leather-bound, purple book. In gold, the letters 'Akeira Moore' are printed on the front; on the side is a silver moon. I stroke the spine gently before opening it, just like she always did. The spine creaks when I open it and I see her familiar, cursive handwriting.

~Flashback~Chase POV~

_Tears stream down her flushed cheeks._

"_Please," she begs as I carry her, over my shoulder, out of the temple. "Make them stop!" I chuckle coldly but call off the attack. I set her on her feet but keep her arm in a death grip. Her porcelain skin seems to glow in the moon light. I trace her jaw with a finger; enjoying the softness and warmth._

~End Flashback~

I snap out of my reverie. Glaring down at the small book in my hands, I throw it across the room. _I lost Akeira, I lost Nakoma, but I _will not_ lose my daughter! I wonder who she will look like. _The air shifts and I know someone is here. I turn and find myself staring into familiar silver eyes…

~Raimundo's POV~

"Go talk to her," Kimiko insists. "You haven't even tried to talk to her since she got here."

"So?"

"_So_, that was _three_ weeks ago!"

"She hasn't tried talking to me either! She hasn't even left her room." _Kimi has been bugging about this since Nakoma showed up with Clay and Omi. _

"That's because she's on bed rest, Rai!"

"So what, that spoiled Princess is getting everything she wants; if she wanted to talk to me then she'd ask."

"She has," Clay says, exasperated. I stare at him, completely shocked. "Now go see her." Numbly, I walk into her room and see her sitting on her bed, starring blankly ahead.

"Nikkie?" She looks at me, her eyes glazed over. "Guys!"

~Clay's POV~

Kimi and I hear Rai's panicked shouts and run inside. Nakoma is lying on the ground, her head on Raimundo's lap.

"Go get Master Fung," I command. They rush out and Nakoma looks at me but doesn't appear to see me.

"Chase," she mumbles softly. My fists clench. _Of course, Chase is behind this! _I stroke the hair out of her face; realizing she's cold as ice. Master Fung walks in and kneels by her side.

"All of you, except Kimiko, out." We do as he says. Outside I begin to pace. _She has to be okay, if she's not- _my thoughts are interrupted when Kimi and Master Fung walk out.

"How is she," I ask, worried.

"She's in a trance-like state. Each of you will take shifts guarding her, make sure she does not leave."


	16. Chapter 16

~Nakoma's POV~

His cold eyes stare into my own. _Why am I here?_ He doesn't answer me, I don't think he can even hear me. Chase goes about his daily business; completely ignoring the hag. The one thing that varies is his going into a dark room next to his that smells like roses; he gets a faraway look on his face, almost pained. _What's bugging him?_ He hasn't said a word since I left. I know that's not it, though. It's something from his past. I walk over to where he's sitting on the bed and stand in front of him. Chase doesn't even look up.

~Clay's POV~

Nakoma stands up and tries to walk outside, but stops when she gets to the door. Like she's staring at someone. I look out the door; seeing no one, and gently lead her back to her bed. Raimundo will be here soon to trade shifts, then Omi, then Kimiko. _Always the_ _same._ Nakoma has been in this trance for seven months. The big day is approaching and I wonder if she'll be awake. I hear Omi sigh and turn over in the next cubicle. Whenever he guards her he will read her, her favorite book; _InkHeart_ or _The Old Willis Place: A Ghost Story._

~Raimundo's POV~

"Clay," I say, walking inside," your shift's over, get some sleep." He nods and goes into the next cubicle. I sit beside Nakoma and begin to brush her hair. _The same nightly ritual._ After that's done I put on her Hans Zimmer CD she made, it has the entire soundtrack from the first Pirate of the Caribbean on it. She relaxes and closes her eyes. Her breathing deepens as she falls sound asleep. Suddenly, her eyes open and she shoots up in bed.

"Rai," she asks hoarsely.

~Nakoma's POV~

I'm no longer in the same room at Chase's Citadel, I'm back in my room at the temple. "What happened," I ask.

"You went into a trance; you've been in it for seven months."

"What? That's ridiculous!"

"It's the truth. Guys, she's awake," Rai shouts excitedly. Clay, Omi, and Kimiko run in and they all give me a hug at once. I tap Clay's shoulder.

"Can't…Breathe…Back off," I gasp. They back away and I take in a lungful of air. "Okay, so, uh…" I trail off. _What am I supposed to say after waking up from a trance I've been in for the past seven months? Wow, no sane person should have to ask him or herself that! _"How's life?" They stare at me as if I'm stupid. "What?"

"…"

"Fine then, be that way." I lie back down and go to sleep.

~Dream/Flashback~Chase's POV~

_Akeira sits on the window sill, looking up at the moon. This is part of her nightly ritual. She looks over at me and smiles. She doesn't tell, but I know she's dying. She can't live in a place like this; only evil can. I should have known that, I did know that, but I needed her here. I have to have an heir and this woman is carrying it. She surprised me when she embraced my evil side, but she was never truly evil herself._

"_Chase," she whispers; her silver eyes full of tears. There was no light in them anymore, just sadness. She gets up and walks over to me. All of a sudden, she collapses in my arms. I don't have to check, I already know. Her skin is ashen and ice cold. I pick her up and lay her on her bed. Stroking her thick, red hair out of her face and behind her ear, then I walk out of the room. Before I shut the door, I take one last look around. Once the door is shut the smell of roses is locked away._

~End Dream/Flashback~

Nakoma's POV~

_For some weird reason I dreamed I was in the movie Tangled. I was a squirrel, Flynn's squirrel actually. Hmm, a Sunday sounds really good right now! _I open my eyes and see Rai asleep in one corner and Clay asleep in another. _Maybe, if I'm quiet, I can sneak past them and into the kitchen. _Using my awesome ninja skills, I take a step forward and…Fall flat on my face. I had been so busy thinking about food that I hadn't noticed the bubble wrap on the floor nor the cans on strings. _What is this, Tremors? If they keep this up, being eaten by a Graboid will seem like a blessing!_

"Sonofabitch!" The two guys shoot up and run over to me. _Stupid bastards, why didn't they trip?_

"Are you alright," Rai asks.

"You didn't hurt yourself, did you," asks Clay. I rest my chin on my hand.

"What is all this?" They look guilty. "Don't just stand there, help me up!" They each grab and arm and drag me to my feet. "Gently, you idiots!" _Man, I am not in a good mood today!_

"Sorry."

"Sorry." I nod and try to maneuver myself outside. "Sit," Clay commands. "What is it you need?"

"A hot fudge Sunday with lots and lots of beautiful cherries!" Raimundo helps me back to me mat and Clay leaves. "So, you guys are gonna help me with everything?"

"Yeah, Kimi and Omi had to go get some Wu, they'll be back in a few days."

"What if I gotta pee?" He blushes, then smiles cockily. "I'm not using a bucket."

"I'll help you to the bathroom." I blink a couple of times; staring at him as if he had two heads.

"I'd rather use a bucket."

**(A/N): Nakoma went into a trance because it was the aniversary of Akeira's death and she stayed in the trance because of all the added stress. The only reason she came out was because she was finally able to relax.**


	17. Chapter 17

~Chase's POV~

I glower at the two monks and their Dragon.

"Why are you here?"

"We already told you," growls Kimiko. "We went after some Shen-Gong-Wu, and then we were zapped _here_ by the Hag!"

"Where are the other two monks?"

"None of your business." _She is brave; I must give the young Dragon that. _I chuckle and tilt her face to stare at me.

"I will find her, and I _will_ kill your friends, then I will kill you." I leave the dungeon and walk up the stairs to my room. _Nakoma's due-date is on the thirty-first of October, only two days away. As soon as it's born, I will come for her, my daughter, and the stone._

~Nakoma's POV~

"Hey, Rai?" The Brazilian walks into my cubicle, dressed in a white hoodie, green cargo pants…And a frilly pink apron! I begin to laugh uncontrollably. He'd lost a bet with Clay on who could eat the most Jalapeños.

"Oh, shut up," he grumbles.

"That's a good look for you."

"Yeah," Clay agrees," you look exactly like my Aunt Clara!" We laugh even harder, and Clay falls out of his chair. "Do you have a camera?" Before Raimundo can react, I snap two photos of him with my phone and send them to Facebook.

"Give me that!" I throw the phone to Clay and we begin to play a game of monkey in the middle; Raimundo being the monkey. A hand reaches out and grabs my phone; the hand is connected to Kimiko.

"Kimi!" I race forward and tackle-hug her. "Where's Omi?"

"He decided to stay behind a while."

"Really? That doesn't sound like him," Clay says dubiously. "Usually he wants to be the first one to try out the new Wu."

"False alarm, Dojo and Omi'll be here later." Rai and Clay stare at each other. I loop my arm through hers.

"C'mon, let's go to the kitchen and you can tell me about your trip." She smiles at me, her eyes flashing.

~Clay's POV~

"Something's not right about Kimi."

"You got that right," I agree.

"Did you see the way her eyes flashed? That wasn't with joy of seeing me again."

"Yeah, more like possession."

"Why would she be possessive over Nikkie?"

"Not over Nikkie, over _you_. You've been flirting constantly with Nikkie since she woke up and she's flirted back."

"What, no we haven't-"he stops and thinks for a minute. "Oh."

"Yep, and Kimi is jealous."

"You think Nikkie is jealous of Kimi?"

"Nope." He gets a determined look on his face.

"Kimi and me have only been dating for a few months; which one do I choose?" I shrug my shoulders and walk into my cubicle. _He had better not choose Nikkie!_

~Chase's POV~(1)

I tell a fake story of having to go all the way to Ireland to Nakoma and she eats it up. When I finish she sighs dreamily.

"I wish I could go there someday."

"It's beautiful. I've brought you something." She looks up at me; smiling excitedly. I pull a Barnes &amp; Noble bag out from under the table and hand it to her. She takes it eagerly; pulling the book out of the bag. When she sees the title she hugs me tightly.

~Nakoma's POV~

_The Raven And Other Poems By Edgar Allen Poe._

"He's one of my favorite authors," I say happily. "Jack buys me a book by him every year for my birthday!"

"What about Christmas?"

"A Baldknobbers show in Branson or we go see Jeff Dunham."

"I'm glad you like it. I was in the store for hours."

"Thank you!" I hug her tightly and run out to the gardens to read.

Gaily bedlight

A gallant knight

In sunshine and in shadow

Singing a song

In search of Eldorado.

But he grew old-

This knight so bold-

And o'er his heart a shadow

Fell, as he found

No spot of ground

That looked like Eldorado.

And, as his strength

Failed him at length,

He met a pilgrim shadow-

"Shadow," said he,

"Where can it be-

This land of Eldorado?"

"Over the mountains

Of the moon

Down the valley of the shadow,

Ride boldly ride,"

The shadow replied,-

"If you seek for Eldorado!"

**(1): Chase is disguised as Kimiko.**

**(A/N): The poem at the end is called Eldorado, it's by Edgar Allen Poe.**


	18. Chapter 18

~Chase's POV~

_My disguise is working, but I don't know for how long. Hopefully long enough for me to get Nakoma and my Daughter. Today is the day she's to be born; Halloween. It's ironic really that my daughter shall be born on a night that all evil is free to roam the earth._ I chuckle to myself as I take on the Dragon of fire's small form. _It's strange to be staying in the temple again after all theses years._

"Get back here you chicken shit," Nakoma yells. "C'mon, fight me like a man!" I walk outside and see Nikkie throwing tomatoes at Raimundo.

"Guys," I shout, "What's going on?"

"_He_ called me fat! I'm not fat, I'm pregnant!" She throws another tomato.

"You need to lie down!" I take her gently by her elbow and lead her back to her room. "Don't pay attention to Raimundo. Relax," I say in a soothing and hypnotic voice. Her eyelids begin to droop and eventually close. I sigh, leaning back against the wall. "What are we going to do about your temper, Nakoma?" Her eyebrows knit together and she whimpers; as if in pain.

"Leave them alone." She begins to struggle; her legs tangling up in the blanket. Before I can move to wake, she shoots bolt upright in bed, fighting for breath. She looks at me and tries to get up and run.

"Calm down! It's me, it's Kimi!" The panic leaves her face, her breathing back to normal. "What was your dream about?" She lies back down and reaches for a cup of crushed ice.

"N-nothing, it was nothing." When my gaze doesn't falter she shakes her head. "I swear, Kimi, just the usual." _The usual? When have these nightmares started?_

"Alright," I say standing up. "Feel free to talk to me about it if you need to though; my cubicle's always open."

~Nakoma's POV~

Kimi walks out and goes to her room.

"C'mon out guys." Rai and Clay walk into my room and sit beside me. "You're right, that isn't Kimiko."

"We told you," Rai says, resting his head on my shoulder.

"Now we need to figure out who it is," Clay sighs.

"I think I know, Cowboy," I say through gritted teeth. "But first, get me to the infirmary."

"Why," asks Raimundo, clueless.

"Unless you want to deliver this baby yourself, get me to the infirmary!" Clay picks me up and begins to run. Rai follows him, screaming for someone to help us. Once I'm lain down on the cot, I grab Rai by the front of his hoodie and slap him across the face, hard. He stops his mumbling and lets me hold his hand. "Is Master Fung coming?"

"I am here, Nakoma," he says soothingly.

"Ger 'er outta me damnit!" My legs are propped up and Master Fung winces. "What?"

"You're not dilated enough."

"Gah! Well, get me fricken dilated!"

~Seventeen Hours Later~

"One more push, Nikkie, you can do it," Clays says encouragingly.

"Yeah, you're doing great," says 'Kimi'.

"Shut the heck up," I exclaim. The sounds of an infant's cries fill the room. Tears stream down my face. "Give me my baby girl." Anabelle is wrapped in a soft blanket and handed to me. I hold her close to me and kiss the top of her head. "Hello, little Anabelle." Her eyes open and appear to be an orange so dark that they look red. They are ringed in silver; her hair is snow white and so is her skin. She smiles a toothless grin at me.

"Can I hold her?" My head snaps up and I see Chase Young smirking down at me. Clay, Raimundo, and Master Fung jump into action, but are easily defeated. HE takes Anabelle and pulls me up by my arm. Pain sears through me, making me fall to my knees. There's a flash and then we're back in his throne room. I'm back to the size I was before I was pregnant.

"Give me my baby," I demand.

"Wasn't it _you_ who said she was _our_ child?" I growl and lunge at Chase as soon as Colby takes the baby. He backhands me; knocking me to the ground. "Control your temper."

"Why couldn't you have just left us at the temple?"

"My heir must stay by me at all times."

"Why?"

"She is the fifth Dragon." I give him a blank stare. "Anabelle is the Dragon of Night. Only those born on the stroke of midnight on All Hallows Eve will become the Dragon of Night. She is the first one in over 20,000 years."

What are her powers?"

"Each child's powers are different." I sit down on his chair; resting my head in my hands. _It seems like no matter what happens, I'm always brought back here. _His hand squeezes my shoulder gently. "You must stay here too."

"No!"

"That is the only way you will survive." _It wasn't a threat_, I realized, _he was telling me_ _the truth. That doesn't mean I have to like it though_! I glare at him and walk over to where Colby is holding my baby. "She's beautiful." I nod, holding her closer to me.

"Do you have a nursery set up?"

"Follow me." He leads me to a room connected to his. The walls are a velvet purple color with silver trim; there's a rocking chair in one corner, a crib and dresser against the far wall, and three shelves against another wall. All of the furnishings are made of darkly stained wood. The shelves are full of stuffed animals and children's books.


End file.
